2017 Harley-Davidson CVO Limited Review

This is what happens when Grand American Touring arrives at the very top of the mountain of comfort and style. Power, custom features and premium audio for the rider who wants it all…

One with everything please, to go.

If you want best-in-class power, infotainment, paint and comfort for you and your passenger, the CVO™ Limited is your bike. All-new, black granite Twin-Cooled™ Milwaukee-Eight™ 114 [1870cc] engine, all-new double bending valve front suspension and emulsion rear suspension with hand-adjustable pre-loaded, a color-matched splitstream air vent and Tour-Pak® carrier LED bezel, LED turn signals and LED lighting surround. There’s a new seat cover, insert and stitching. An improved integrated security system with a power locking fob. It all here, right down to a system that monitors the pressure in your tires.

The CVO™ Limited model is for road enthusiasts who want it all. All the quality. All the legacy. All the love. This premium motorcycle is the pinnacle of ultimate custom comfort, luxury, and style, and features the entire range of Project RUSHMORE enhancements. It truly raises the bar on comfort, convenience, power, style, infotainment, and confidence.CVO™

First introduced in 1999, the Custom Vehicle Operations range represents the pinnacle of Harley-Davidson craftsmanship. Each machine is hand assembled by a single technician, with hours of craft and care invested in producing the ultimate in factory customs. Each CVO motorcycle is part of a strictly limited edition utilising the latest technology and finest components.

New for 2017:

New Twin-Cooled™ Milwaukee-Eight™ 114 engine for Touring modelsNew power locks for saddlebags and fork controlled by a single security and locking key fob on Touring models

Hand-adjustable emulsion rear shocks provide 15-30% more preload adjustment and adjust with the turn of a single knob, no tools required; new bigger pistons improve damping performance over the range of suspension travel

Their look, distinctive sound and massive torque make them instantly recognizable, but the Milwaukee-Eight® 107 and Milwaukee-Eight® 114 engines take the Harley-Davidson® V-Twin to a place it’s never been. They’re the most powerful, coolest-running motors we’ve ever built. Smoother, stronger and more durable. With crisper throttle response and truer, cleaner sound. Four valves per cylinder, single chain-driven cam, dual spark plugs, counter-balanced and rubber mounted. Developed and proven over countless miles and millions of hours. Every single part is new, engineered to give you more performance and more of the feeling you want from an engine. Today, it’s a whole new ride.

Control

If your appetites run to big, gluttonous quantities of asphalt, we have your motorcycle. It’s built by the perfectionists in Custom Vehicle Operations, and it starts with the best of everything that makes a Harley-Davidson motorcycle work so well on the open road. Our top-end brakes, lighting and frame technology. Our all-new dual bending Valve front suspension and rear emulsion shocks. At the center of every CVO™ motorcycle is the one thing nothing else on the road offers. 114 cubic inches of Harley-Davidson® Milwaukee-Eight™ V-Twin. It gives you bigger power and cooler running temperatures under all operating conditions. That eighteen-wheeler you were thinking about passing? Consider it behind you.

Infotainment

You want to spend a few hours talking woven carbon fiber cone woofers, polypropylene fiber dome midrange and aluminum dome tweeters? How about an intelligent speed tuning system that adjusts the volume to match whatever speed zone you just blasted into, then balances the level of bass and treble as well? We didn’t think so. Let’s leave it at this: if it makes the sound coming at you in the saddle better than anything else on the road and enhances the experience of whatever devices you’ve brought along for the trip, it’s on your CVO™ motorcycle. Wherever there’s a bit of space, we’ve got it filled with pre-amps, amps and speakers. And it’s all built to work the way riders work, with features like voice activation, a big full-color touchscreen and switches you can reach without taking your hands off the grips. So when you pull up next to some poor driver belted into the seat of his luxury automobile, know this. His infotainment system doesn’t hold a candle to yours.

Feel

We know that getting to the point in life where you have a Harley-Davidson® CVO™ motorcycle in your garage takes some serious effort. So we pour our effort into making every mile you log on the bike feel like a giant reward. We’re talking the kind of comfort that would make a sultan on his silk divan jealous. You get our all-new Double Bending Valve front suspension and rear emulsion shocks. Heated hand grips. Big plush seats with loads of wiggle room for you and your passenger to make sure rear-end fatigue doesn’t cut short an amazing day of riding. The enhancements you experience on a CVO bike are the result of our on-going effort to perfect things like airflow, passenger space, back rests, seat textures, hand controls and everything else that helps you ride longer, and with a bigger grin on your face. On a CVO motorcycle you can be sure we’ve got it dialed in as good as it gets.

Style

Let’s cut right to the quick here. Center stage on a CVO™ motorcycle goes to the big Milwaukee-Eight™ 114 engine, so it comes fully tricked out in deep, breathtaking chrome and Screamin’ Eagle badging. Explosive power. Explosive looks. That’s the basic design theme everywhere you look on a Custom Vehicle Operations™ motorcycle. Big, hand-finished paint jobs that knock onlookers straight out of their socks. You get the same knock-out style on the wheels. In the exclusive, chromed custom parts. Even around the bezel of a fairing vent. And the real beauty is that it all comes straight from the Harley-Davidson factory. Unlike some one-off custom bikes out there, everything works. Every custom shop detail has a microscopically tight fit. If looks could kill, a CVO motorcycle would be at the top of the most wanted list. Come to think of it, that’s exactly where it is.

ENGINE HERITAGE

2017The All-New Milwaukee-Eight™ Engine

The sound of the Harley-Davidson® 45-degree V-Twin rings through the history of motorcycling in an unbroken line stretching back to 1909. Each one improving on the one before it. Iconic. Durable. Unmistakable in their sound. Unparalleled in their muscular look. Unmatched in the feeling they deliver to the rider. And now we’re proud to introduce the most powerful Harley-Davidson engines ever built: The all-new Milwaukee-Eight™ 107 and Milwaukee-Eight™ 114 engines. The next generation Harley-Davidson® V-Twin comes to our touring line. The next era of power, performance and innovation has been forged.

1999 – Today Twin Cam

The second two-cam Big Twin in our history, after the 1928 JDH, with bigger displacement, more power, and a more rigid engine/transmission connection for improved powertrain stiffness.

1984 – 1999 Evolution®

The first H-D engine developed using Computer Aided Design. The “Evo” was an evolution, an all-new engine that ran better, used less fuel and delivered more horsepower and torque.

1966 – 1984 Shovelhead

We rolled into the modern touring era with a new engine on the original Electra Glide® model. “Power Pac” aluminum heads, 12-volt electrical system, carburetor and easily adjustable timing system. Its nickname comes from the “shoveled-out” look of the middle section of the rocker covers.

1948 – 1965 Panhead

New aluminum cylinder heads, new hydraulic valve lifters, better oil circulation and roller bearings on the crankpin reduced weight, and added durability. The nickname describes the rocker covers looking like upside down pans.

1936 – 1947 Knucklehead

The Knucklehead was nicknamed for its rocker covers and push rod tubes, resembling a clenched fist. It was the first H-D twin with overhead valves and recirculating oil. Considered the father of all H-D® V-Twin air-cooled engines, its architecture has carried forward to today.

1929 – 1973 Flathead

The Flathead engine got its nickname from the flat shape of the heads. It didn’t have valves in the cylinder head; they were set off to the side. It featured easily removable heads for serviceability.

1911 – 1929 F-Head

Designed to bring more power to street, police and commercial applications, it featured a waterproof ignition system and 61, and later, 74 cubic inches of displacement.

If you started in 1909 with the very first Harley-Davidson® V-Twin engine and worked your way up through every engine, every innovation, every improvement, every ride, every durability test in all those years and countless miles since, you arrive at the Twin Cooled™ Milwaukee-Eight™ 114 engine. This is the top of the line. 114 cubic inches of air and precision cooled Harley-Davidson® V-Twin engine power. Twin cooling cools the heads around the exhaust ports to deliver at or near peak performance under all operating conditions and temperatures. Today, it’s a whole new ride.

Twin-Cooled™ Milwaukee-Eight™ 114 Engine Overview

Here are eight ways the new Twin-Cooled™ Milwaukee-Eight™ 114 engine gives you a better ride*:

More Power- Bigger cylinders, four-valve cylinder heads and dual spark plugs deliver 10% more torque and more power throughout the rev range with no net weight gain.

Better Fuel Economy**- The power comes with improved fuel economy to give you more out of every tank of gas.

Heat Management- Precision oil or water cooling for cooler running and consistent performance, from stop-and-go traffic to highway speeds.

More Passenger Comfort- Positions for the rear exhaust pipe and catalytic converters provide a more comfortable ride.

More Charging Power- A charging system with 50% more power at idle to make easy work of the demands modern touring features put on an electrical system.

Smoother Running- The counter-balancing system, rubber mounts, lower idle speed and dual knock sensors for more precise timing control and smoother running from idle to top gear.

Less Maintenance-The valve train requires no adjustment no matter how many years or miles you ride.

Narrow Primary- The narrower primary drive gives your left foot a straighter, easier reach to the ground, for an easier lift off and more control at stoplights.

*Compared to 2016 CVO models.

** Compared to 2016 models. Based on estimates from laboratory exhaust emissions tests specified by EPA, not during on road riding. Actual mileage and fuel economy will vary depending on bike model and configuration, how you ride/maintain your bike, road conditions, and other factors.

Ventilator Elite Air Cleaner

Centered in the classic lines of the Twin-Cooled™ Milwaukee-Eight™ 114 engine your eyes can’t miss the Ventilator Elite Air Cleaner Cover with Screamin Eagle® 114ci insert. It leaves no doubt that this engine means business.

Reflex™ Linked Brembo® Brakes with ABS

No doubt about it, there are times when you need to haul things down in a hurry. And you don’t get to pick those times. Or decide whether or not they occur when you’re on a flat, smooth, dry, perfect stretch of pavement. That’s why our touring models feature the Reflex™ Linked Brembo® Brakes with ABS. ABS turns a locked-up front wheel or a rear wheel skid into a relic from riding’s history. And the front and rear brakes are electronically linked to provide exactly the right amount of brake to each tire no matter what the road condition is. No matter how good you are, this will make you a better rider.

Single Integrated Security & Locking Fob

The factory-installed next-generation security system on the CVO™ Limited motorcycle features a hands-free fob that locks and unlocks your machine plus automatically arms and disarms its electronic security functions as you approach and walk away from the bike. Stick the fob on your ignition key ring and let it do all the work. It’s this attention to detail and security that make Harley-Davidson® motorcycles unique.

All-New Front and Rear Suspension

We matched the all-new Milwaukee-Eight™ engines in our touring line this year with a totally re-engineered dual bending valve front and rear suspension with easily-adjustable emulsion shocks. You get more comfort, more control and more confidence in your handling. The new rear shocks give you 15 to 30% more pre-load. They adjust with the turn of a single knob, no tools required. New, bigger pistons have more area than before for improved damping performance over the range of the suspension travel. This new fork technology improves the ride, especially over the harshest bumps, and reacts faster to keep the wheel planted for confident braking and handling.* *Compared to the 2016 Touring Model engines

INFOTAINMENT

Tire Pressure Monitoring In Full-Color Display

This 6.5-inch full-color touch screen puts the info you want in front of you bigger than ever, including a Harley-Davidson first: tire-pressure monitoring right in the display. No more need to pull over and dig out the tire gauge to make sure you’ve got your psi up to snuff. A glance down at the big display and you know you’re good to go. There’s also an alert light on the odometer, just to make sure you’re covered. The 6.5-inch display itself is a wonder of modern graphics, colors you can dial in, and auto and manual dim. It’s all designed to sit stylishly inside your fairing. This is screen technology brought to an eye-popping level of Harley-Davidson functionality. Maybe more than you expect, but when you’re going all the way, it’s everything you deserve.

BOOM!™ Box 6.5GT Radio

Let’s start with this. The BOOM!™ Box 6.5GT Radio puts out 75 watts per channel at 1% distortion and features a factory-tuned, optimized equalizer that pumps out more power and can be played louder while maintaining the clarity of your sound. And the speed tuning system delivers more than just volume changes at different speeds. It changes the level of bass and treble to dial in the best sound, whether you’re running at a stately pace down the strip or going hell for leather down an open stretch of road. How do you like the sound of a Harley-Davidson® motorcycle?

BOOM!™ Audio SiriusXM Satellite Radio

Even when you end up in places where radio towers don’t reach, your favorite music, sports, talk and news are along for the ride on the CVO™ Limited model. BOOM!™ Audio SiriusXM® radio gives you over 175 digital channels and coverage from coast-to-coast. Which means you won’t hit that point where the signal starts to fade, the sound gets full of static and you have to start scanning for stations. Instead, you just keep enjoying the song and the ride. You can also sign up for additional Specialty Services through SiriusXM, like graphical weather overlay, forecast, traffic and nearby fuel prices. You get all of these services at no additional charge for the first three months. After that, you can sign up for any or all of them through SiriusXM. BOOM!™ Audio is the ultimate. And this is the ultimate BOOM!™ Audio.

Need help convincing someone to let you buy your CVO™ dream bike or come touring with you? This is for them. With its suspended, dual control design, this custom seat with leather inserts (on the standard model) offers the ultimate in touring luxury for rider and passenger mile after mile. And does it with eye-popping custom-stitched styling for those rare moments when it’s not occupied by a pair of backsides. It sits low and it’s trimmed in at the thighs for ultra-comfortable long-hauling. Its suspension feature acts as a secondary shock absorber. The passenger backrest is plush and cozy. With all that, plus in-seat heating, even the most finicky hangers-on will be happy to keep on going.

One-Touch Design Philosophy

Here’s the rule we laid down for every compartment cover and saddlebag lid on our touring line: if it doesn’t open with the single touch of a button or one hand, while wearing gloves, it doesn’t go on the motorcycle. Because in all our conversations with riders, we’ve never encountered a single individual who wanted to have to put something on the ground before he could store it in a saddlebag.

Batwing Fairing Reduces Head Buffeting

This is what the science of cheating the wind involves at Harley-Davidson now: fluid mechanics, algorithms, high-speed super computers and thousands upon thousands of wind-tunnel tests with riders in the saddle telling us how it feels. And that’s before we take it out on the road for thousands of miles of real world wind gusts and every form of rain a cloud can spit out. The result: a Batwing fairing that delivers smoother air flow and drastically reduced head buffeting. Most of it thanks to the splitstream vent. It opens and closes with one touch of a button. The feeling of being in the wind just got even better.

Tour-Pak® Luggage Carrier Design

Like the saddlebags, the Tour-Pak® luggage carrier design sports a sleek look, but it didn’t come at the expense of storage space. it can easily accommodate two full-face helmets. There’s a document and toolkit pouch. The lock is integrated into the latch to keep your key away from your premium paint. And premium hinges work better and look sharper. You can operate the single latch with one hand. Storage. Check. We have it covered.

Chrome Dual Exhaust

The premium custom look goes the distance on the CVO™ Limited model with the chrome dual exhaust. Now with a relocated rear exhaust port that moves heat away from the passenger, it features 4-inch touring mufflers, chrome end caps and chrome exhaust shields. Relish in the rumble and performance of these high-end pipes.

STYLE

Pure Harley-Davidson Styling

You can identify the all-new Milwaukee-Eight™ 114 engine from 25 feet away. The racing scoop style of the air cleaner is all it takes to see that this is the new Harley-Davidson power plant. But when you look a little closer, you’ll notice that the things that are good about the authentic, air-cooled look of the Harley-Davidson® V-Twin are alive and well. It’s a jewel machined out of metal, head-heavy and narrow at the waist. Finned cylinders, of course. Pure. Dripping with power. The engine is the visual center piece of the bike. This one makes an ironclad statement about holding on to what’s right and staying true to what satisfies.

LED Bullet Turn Signals

The classic Harley-Davidson look of sleek bullet-style turn signals takes a leap forward on the CVO™ Limited motorcycle with the addition of blazing LED lighting. The style grabs the eyes when the bike is leaning on its side stand. The powerful LED bulbs grab them even harder when you hit the blinkers out there in traffic. The CVO™ Limited motorcycle now has LED lighting all around: headlight, taillight and turn signals. It’s how we make sure you’re seeing, and being seen.

Chrome Slicer Custom Wheels

It’s hard to take your eyes off the Chrome Slicer wheels on the CVO™ Limited motorcycle. The Mirror Chrome Slicer* wheels perfectly matched to models with the chrome engine. When the paint scheme includes a blacked-out engine, we go with Contrast Chrome Slicer** wheels to further dial up the tough visual theme. But while you’re looking them over, notice the 90 degree valve stem. It makes them as easy to fill as well as easy on the eyes. *Palladium Silver/Phantom Blue with Wicked Sapphire and Stardust Silver & Palladium Silver with Carbon Dust ** Spiked Olive & Serpentine Green with Carbon Dust and Black Garnet & Electric Red Pearl with Carbon Dust

Airflow Collection

The CVO™ Limited motorcycle rolls off the line with a full complement of custom touches from the Airflow Collection: rider footboard inserts, passenger footboard inserts, shifter pegs, brake pedal and cover, highway pegs, heated handgrips with gnurled inserts, and shift lever arms. You want more. More is what you get.

Hand-Laid Graphics and Tank Badge

This isn’t just a motorcycle. It’s a work of art, born out of passion, creativity and long days, late nights and refusing to be satisfied until every detail was perfect. When we add the dazzling graphics, we lay them by hand, then apply layer after layer of clear coat until the paint feels so deep you could lose an afternoon just staring at it. When we added the signature badges, we did it with metal. Nothing else would be right on this masterpiece.

"Mr. Totalmotorcycle". Owner and Founder of Total Motorcycle. Supporting over Motorcyclists and Motorcycling for 19 great years. Total Motorcycle is my pride and joy and being able to reach out 300 million people has been incredible but I could not have done it without the support of my visitors, readers and members, thank you so much! You are making a difference to millions of riders worldwide. Thank you.

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